About the Unification Church

Theologically, the Unification Church is, at best, a cult of Christianity. It's long history of church-ordained deception, including deceptive recruitment practices makes it a cult according to sociological standards as well.

Followers are commonly referred to as the Moonies (after the cult's founder and leader, Sun Myung Moon). Some followers object to the name, claiming it is meant as an insult. However, the name was coined and used by members of the Unification Church itself.

In the opinion of the publisher of Apologetics Index, Moon's 'Messianic' fantasies and delusions of grandeur (''Lord of the Universe'') can only be considered evindence of religious insanity.

The Bible identifies people like Sun Myung Moon and his minions as servants of Satan:

(2 Corinthians 11:13-15 NIV) For such men are false apostles, deceitful workmen, masquerading as apostles of Christ. {14} And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. {15} It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will be what their actions deserve.

Currently the Unification Church goes by the name "Association of Families for Unification and World Peace," or "Family Federation for World Peace and Unification." However, the Unification Church operates under numerous names and business fronts.

Begin with a well-seasoned Taoist philosophy, add Christian words and phrases and some Bible verses, and stir briskly until they blend.

Now add a bit of spiritism, a pinch of numerology, a dab of physics and a dash of anti-communism; mix it all together, using a Korean Messiah, and you have the recipe for one of the newest religious movements sweeping America -- the Unification Church, founded by Rev. Sun Myung Moon.

Jesus Christ is trying to follow me, my footsteps, all the way. He stayed in Paradise, because he did not marry. But I gave him marriage. Donít you want to meet the wives of Buddha, Confucius and Muhammad? They sent letters of gratitude to me from spirit world. They pledge that even if their religion disappears, they will follow me. Can you imagine anyone in this world claiming to have married those past saints? The rings I prepared for their marriage cost a great deal per couple. Did I do that because I am crazy? Did I ask you to donate to cover that?

A cult of Christianity is a group of people, which claiming to be Christian, embraces a particular doctrinal system taught by an individual leader, group of leaders, or organization, which (system) denies (either explicitly or implicitly) one or more of the central doctrines of the Christian faith as taught in the sixty-six books of the Bible.

Though Moon, claiming Jesus failed, has declared himself to be the "Messiah," he succeeds in deceiving many Christians (Examples).

Sociological definitions of the term "cult" include

... consideration of such factors as authoritarian leadership patterns, loyalty and commitment mechanisms, lifestyle characteristics, [and] conformity patterns (including the use of various sanctions in connection with those members who deviate).

What does Moon himself say about those who oppose the Unification Church?

So from this time of peak every people or every organization that goes against the Unification Church will gradually come down or drastically come down and die. Many people will die -- those who go against our movement.

Sun Myung Moon, Master Speaks 2/14/74

Those inside the cult are warned against being wealthier than Sun Myung Moon is. In addition, the movement's members are urged to attend a 40-day education in Jardim, Brazil, without which they "cannot register for the Kingdom":

My 80th birthday will be one of a kind in Godís dispensation, because a new millennium begins from that point. So we need to invest every effort to make a gift. Isn't this wrong, for a parent to talk to his children about what to give him? But you will be humiliated and punished if you do
not do it and I want you to become the best possible men and women. When we go over this hill, if anyone has more wealth than I do, you will be stuck there. By now you should be able to offer everything to God. Thatís why I gave the blessing of being able to give the Total Living Sacrifice Offering. So you are in the position of New Testament and your children are Completed Testament, and the offering is Old Testament, all things. So three stages are together offered. So you have to go to Jardim for 40-day education. Without that, you cannot register for the Kingdom.

The movement Moon heads is a cult, both sociologically and theologically.

As mentioned, for examples of the abusive nature of the Unification Church cult, see the behavior of professed Unificationists in their own newsgroup, alt.religion.unification, and in the various other newsgroups, including alt.support.ex-cult (a newsgroup frequently subjected to their off-topic messages, spam, and heckling).

In these newsgroups, various Unificationists have recently indulged in blatant lying, misrepresentation, and libel. Their words and actions may be the clearest warning yet against getting involved with the cult.

Combatting Cult Mind Control by Steve Hassan. Currently a psychologist, Hassan is a former member of the Unification Church. The book deals with cults in general, but the Unification Church features in many examples.In the Shadow of the Moons Subtitled, "My Life in the Reverend Sun Myung Moon's Family" by Nansook Hong.

Hong, who arrived in the U.S. from Seoul as a 15-year-old bride handpicked by the Reverend Sun Myung Moon for his son, shares her story of 14 years of harrowing abuse at the hands of the Moon family, and her eventual escape to make a new life.

Her memoir, "In the Shadow of the Moons," due out next month from Little, Brown, reveals the Moon family's darkest secrets. She says she witnessed cocaine and marijuana abuse and was taken on trips to Las Vegas during which Sun Myung Moon would have someone place bets for him so he would not actually gamble himself.

She says she contracted a sexually transmitted disease from her husband and was "a toy for his sexual pleasure or an outlet for his violent rages." She also claims she saw the elder Moon abusing his children. She eventually fled the compound with her own children after weeks of meticulous planning.

Carlton Sherwood, Pulitzer-prize winning reporter, treats Moon and his followers with the highest respect and admiration while he describes Moon's critics as ambitious, self-serving, and ruthless. He even devotes an entire chapter to Moon's early biography in Korea, chronicling his grievous travails at the hands of both Communists and Christians. According to Sherwood, although Moon has not been physically tortured in the United States, he was unjustly prosecuted by the U.S. courts, unduly vilified by the American press, and unfairly scorned by the general public. The reason: racial and religious bigotry.

This indictment is leveled at a vast array of American institutions and people ó from the Justice Department to the print media, from manipulative politicians to inflamed parents. No detractor of Moon is spared Sherwood's censure. Although Moon was tried, convicted, and served time in prison for conspiracy Sherwood sees the real conspiracy as the American quest to ''nail'' Moon.

- Newsgroup -alt.religion.unification Pro-Unification Church newsgroup. However, the unethical manner in which Unificationists in this newsgroup counter critics appears to be illustrative of the generally abusive nature of the cult. Some Unification Church promoters are also known for spamming cult propaganda and other off-topic postings to a variety of newsgroups. Particularly abusive is the constant harassment directed at ex-cult members in the alt.support.ex-cult newsgroup.